Kudos
to the people of Asom who have been courting
violence time and again with utmost courage!
An otherwise peace-loving people, the
denizens of Asom have battled many a rough
weather. The recent ethnic violence in
a certain part of the State has tarnished
its otherwise secular image. Though Asom
has always welcomed everyone with open
arms, destiny has been cruel towards the
State. Terrorism has many a times jolted
it out of its reverie. And October 31,
2008 is another such day which will go
down as a black day for the State.
The noise of the Diwali crackers had not
yet died down when explosions of a more
sinister kind jolted Guwahati. Like many
others, I was also shaken by the sound
of a bomb of a different kind. I quickly
brushed off the fleeting thought that
this might be a real bomb but as soon
as I stepped out into the terrace of my
fifth floor apartment in Ambari, I could
see a thick fog of black smoke rising
like a monster not very far from where
I stay. For a few seconds my legs felt
like lead; I was rooted to the floor.
Just then the phones started ringing as
dear ones began calling enquiring about
our well being for a bomb had just ripped
apart the premises of the Court of the
Judicial Magistrate (CJM). Minutes later
sirens blared as ambulances and TV channel
vehicles roared past towards ground Zero.
I frantically dialed my cousin’s
number who is a practicing advocate in
the Gauhati High Court and who makes hundreds
of trips to the CJM on a regular day.
My heart beat louder and faster as the
mobile networks were jammed. After about
more than a hundred calls, I was finally
able to get through to her. I breathed
a sigh of relief as I talked to her. She
said that the noise of the blast from
a close range had almost numbed her. She
was shaking from head to toe. I asked
her to come down to my place, which is
a stone’s throw away from the High
Court. After assuring me that she was
safe inside the court she asked me to
get in touch with her parents as she was
unable to get through to them.
I was at a loss as there was nothing I
could do to help the affected people except
switch on the television and helplessly
watch the scenes of burnt vehicles and
charred human bodies being carried away.
I could only pray for the departed and
the injured. I thanked god for the umpteenth
time as me and my dear ones were not affected
by the blasts. But the hundreds of people
who were directly hit were not lucky like
the rest of us.
Around 350 people were injured and 66
killed in the serial blasts that rocked
Asom on Black Thursday and the figures
may go up in the coming days. Right after
the festival of lights of the previous
day, the 376 unsuspecting families were
cloaked in a sudden pall of gloom and
darkness. For who knew that death was
lurking in such close quarters?
The political games started right after
the news flashed all over the country.
Blames and counter blames among the various
parties began. The Opposition blamed the
government for the failure of law and
order and so on. But what about the hundreds
of innocent people whose lives became
upside down in a matter of seconds; whom
do they blame —- the Muslim militants,
old rebel groups, the newly formed Bangladesh
trained rebel group, militants with Chinese
links or pure destiny?
Matters have crossed the limits of rationale.
There can never be any valid reason or
logic behind the killing of innocent people
far removed from the quagmire of murky
political games. Poor vegetable vendors
who come to sell vegetables in the city
in order to feed hungry mouths at home,
hard working auto-rickshaw drivers, small
shop owners who eke a living out of selling
items in the CJM premises, small time
eatery owners slogging night and day to
earn a few bucks, struggling new lawyers
trying to make a foothold in the already
crowded judiciary. All those who died
in the blasts were innocent people who
have no role to play in any of the demands
or grievances of the terrorist organizations,
whoever they may be. Who are these urban
terror forces fighting for or against?
Do they represent some special section
of people who are unaffected by the terror
they unleash? The militant or rebel organizations
who vouchsafe to represent certain ideals,
are they fighting for their own vested
interests? If not then why target the
innocent people whose plight they seek
to redress. Arguments fail to fathom the
logic behind the senseless mayhem that
seems to befall us time and again. The
rebels, miscreants, terrorists —
one can give them many names but they
are not a different breed with some kind
of distorted DNAs. Ironically they are
people like us with normal parents, siblings
and families. Why then are they attracted
to the corridors of terror? Do we need
to overhaul our beliefs, our morality?
Why is it that a section of us veer towards
negative deeds? Do a people like us deserve
democracy? A thousand questions bombard
and baffle us and there seems to be no
answer to them.
Time is the greatest leveler and the common
man the most daring of even the deadliest
of suicide bombers. For the bomber knows
when and how he is going to die as it
is his job to die. But the common man
on the streets knows that death may catch
him unawares and snuff out his life at
any point of time. But he is not one to
stay at home and hide. His duty towards
his family makes him defy calamities and
after all life must go on. They will return
to the blast sites and carry on with their
lives as before.
I bow and salute the common man, for his
courage and valor is truly unsurpassable.
The common man is like the phoenix, which
rises again from the ashes. He knows that
terror may be lurking in the next alley
or corner but he is not one to run and
hide, he knows he is destiny’s child
and its destiny that will guide and rule
him.
Oh,
Barpeta!
Wg Cdr G
Baruah (Retd)
I remember the incident vividly even today.
I remember it in such a way, as if, it
happened just the day before. I get a
funny feeling thinking about the incident.
I also feel a bit nostalgic. When I visit
the place now or drive through the narrow
lanes of the so called town, a sort of
peculiar feeling comes to me.
It was the freshers social in our college
at Barpeta, popularly known in those days
as the business hub of the State. I don’t
call it a business hub even now. It never
was! You cannot call it a business hub.
Agreed, almost every family of the town
owned line buses or were officers and
contractors of Government departments
and almost seventy five percent of the
population were rich people. You must
have industries, the place must be economically
vibrant and must have infrastructure.
The place had none in those days; the
place has hardly anything even today.
But the way the people conduct themselves,
one will have an impression that there
cannot be another place like Barpeta in
the whole world. I see a little Germany
in Barpeta. The people have a lot of self
respect, self esteem is at its zenith
and they have a habit of having a strong
belief in their capabilities which culminates
in some sort of arrogance. They have something
akin to racism as far as the pride in
the township is concerned. Try talking
any thing slightly derogatory about the
town in front of the townsmen, you are
sure to face a peculiar situation. Another
thing, the people have habit of talking
a bit loudly and are vociferous in their
criticism. There may be a tinge of superiority
complex somewhere! This is how I rate
the people of the township.
On the evening of the fresher’s
social, we had a cultural show. The show
started with a Borgeet and ended with
another Borgeet. In between, we had a
sprinkling of other items like skits,
one act plays and dances —- all
from the local talents selected from amongst
the students of the college. As a senior
student and office bearer of the students’
union, I was at the background. I was
overseeing the show as a mere spectator.
When the time of thanksgiving approached,
I was told to come to the dais and say
a few words. I declined and requested
somebody else to do the honours, because
I was thinking about the next item in
the agenda.
The next item in the agenda was distribution
of sweets and refreshments and I knew
what happened last year. The complete
population of the college converged on
to the table where the sweetmeats were
kept and the scene was something like
an uncontrollable American football melee.
So, this time I ensured that the refreshments
were kept locked in a class room. The
sweets were placed in paper plates neatly
arranged on the desks lined up as dining
table. The seniors acted as volunteers
and made everybody stand in a queue. The
students approached the distribution window
in two lines, collected his or her plate
and dispersed.
Things were going as planned. Suddenly
somebody gave a shove from the back of
one of the queues and the students in
front stumbled to the distribution window
with huge momentum. Glasses were shattered,
a few boys and girls fell down, a few
of them were even trampled and last year’s
scene was re-enacted once again!
Such things happen. Such things also stop
automatically. We did the stock taking
after the hustle-bustle died down. A few
students were injured. One of them had
a huge cut in his palm and I was astounded
to see that the student having the maximum
injury was my own younger brother who
was a fresher in the college!
I took him out and was in search of a
vehicle to shift him to the Civil Hospital
nearby. While doing so, I heard a few
local boys discussing the incident, loudly;
as usual. They were of the opinion that
only village boys could do such a thing
and the boy who was almost trampled to
death was from a village nearby. “They
have not seen anything like this before
and hence they become excited. Serve them
well!” one of them said. I thought
of teaching those boys a lesson but controlled
myself. I think I just responded to these
statements with a wry smile and went away.
This was about forty years back. The boys
of those days have turned to old people
like me now. The girls whom we used to
ogle are grand mothers now. But the town
remains the same. Hardly any infrastructure,
hardly any improvement in communication,
hardly any change in the mindsets! I have
been away from Asom for quite a long period,
but on my return to terra firma, when
I compare the roads, the buildings and
the other infrastructure with those of
Mumbai, Nagpur, Gurgaon or even Kokrajhar
in BTAD, I see nothing new to write about
Barpeta. This is what I noticed when I
took up my new vocation in Barpeta.
It was not difficult to settle down for
my short tenure. Immediately after my
retirement from the Services, I was deputed
by an NGO to over see implementation of
a very important welfare Scheme in the
district. I enjoyed the stay; I also enjoyed
the ambience of the place that I knew
as a student. I was given an office in
the outskirts of the town immediately
after crossing Nakhanda (newly dug) rivulet.
I also took up my rented residence nearby
the office. The place had changed in comparison
to the township. In my student days the
place was a village. Some new buildings
have come up now. Some new offices have
been established and a few offices have
been relocated and the place wore a new
look. Looks not with standing, the ambience
was good. The place had less traffic,
had fewer crowds and wore a cleaner look
than inside the township ––
which was important. I was a happy man
and I was discharging my duties to the
best of my capabilities till the inevitable
happened. In fact, I knew it to be coming,
but it happened much earlier.
We had a lot of goodies to be distributed
to the flood affected people of Barpeta
District and we had a committee to oversee
that only the affected people were the
beneficiaries. I was at the helm of all
these affairs. It was necessary to involve
the Administration in such a task, and
the Administration gave us the services
of a few casual labours.
On the fateful day, I ventured out in
a huge power boat through Nakhanda, entered
Chaul Khowa and thence to the Brahmaputra.
In fact it was difficult to distinguish
Nakhanda from Chaulkhowa or Brahmaputra.
There was water and more swirling muddy
waters every where! The people had nothing
to eat, they had been suffering from water
borne diseases and there was a common
grudge that the Ministers and the Minions
were nowhere to be seen. We went to Milekuchi,
crossed over to Palhaji, touched down
Bhogerpar and then we camped in Bohori.
We were getting ready for a night’s
sojourn and sent out the helpers in search
of something fresh for the dinner. We
had cooking arrangements in the boat itself.
The helpers were the casual labours provided
to us by the Administration and I found
out that they were from the suburb of
Barpeta: poor people who would work through
the day, purchase provisions in the evening
and return to their homes. At times they
won’t have any work and in those
days they would starve. That was the hard
fact of life.
The helpers came back after sometimes
with some country chicken and fresh vegetables.
I sat ruminating about the efforts of
the whole day and making a report under
a Petromax lamp. The helpers started preparing
dinner. The helpers were discussing something
in a loud voice (as is the habit!). The
discussions went something like this:
— “Noticed the way the ladies
covered their faces at Palhaji? And did
you notice the men folks of Bhogerpar
haggling with the boss regarding the quality
of rice and the quantum of dal? They must
have seen anything like this for the first
time in life. Villagers will remain villagers!”
— “And, when will they learn
to behave in a civilized manner! They
were heard cursing in obscene way in front
of the boss (I think, they were talking
about me!), who seems to be a Pucca Goraji
and a townsman!”
—— “The villagers will
remain villagers, Ha!”
I went back forty years when my younger
brother was trampled in a mad melee in
the fresher social in our college and
a few of the local boys taunted us as
village boys! Old habits die hard and
the workers thought themselves to be superior
to the village folks even though the conditions
were hardly different, because they lived
in a place which was nearer to a place
called town. But, let me tell you —-
I love the place, and once you love Barpeta,
you can never forget the place! I have
heard the helpers using obscene words
during conversation amongst themselves
and I suppose, these people cannot talk
without using the invectives. I have seen
similar maladies in rustic Haryana and
Punjab.
I thought that I should write about it
for everybody to have a glimpse of the
tussle between a countryman and a townsman
and hence I wrote it up. I showed the
write-up to a very good friend of mine
from Barpeta for his comments. He read
it, chuckled, and said “Publish
it and forget about visiting Barpeta again.
The town folks will lynch you!”
Even a lynching is acceptable to me, provided
the people of the town change their mindsets.
Affluence is not an indicator of sophistication,
but humility is. Arrogance is not the
answer for arrogance, but humility is!
And if you want to see what humility is,
go to the Kirtan Ghar at Barpeta, you
will see something which you may not have
seen in your life! I know that the people
have self respect and self esteem, what
they lack is the courage to accept the
reality.
It seems that the Barpeta of today is
hidden behind the colourful lungies of
the immigrant population who have created
dreams in the fields. Barpeta has the
distinction of being the progenitor of
creative people. Barpeta produced Ambika
Giri Rai Chowdhury and Prasanna Lal Chowdhury.
Dr Bani Kanta Kakati is from a place called
Batikuriha of Pub Barpeta! If somebody
has brought Barpeta to the forefront in
Music, undoubtedly, the credit must go
to Rameswar Pathak of Borbila, again a
place in Pub Barpeta. The theatre artist
and revolutionary Brja Nath Sarma hailed
from a village called Shila (That is my
village!) again in Pub Barpeta. The place
boasts of the gift of the Mahapurushas
—- both Sankar Dev and Madhab Dev.
The place is revered by the Vaishnavites
as the ultimate pilgrimage. There is one
more thing to add on. Parents used to
line up in front of a few shops before
the marriage of their daughters to have
something authentic of Ivory, once upon
a time. Ivory is not available in the
open market now. But it can be purchased
even today; provided you know the right
man!
So I have a right to love the place! I
also have a right to write about the place,
about the things I would like to happen
and about the way I would like the town
to graduate into a city. Currently, it
seems far flung. May be a self bravado,
may be a false sense of security have
blinded the people who have not been able
to send the right man to the Parliament
or the Assembly in its constituencies
for some times now. But it is a matter
of time; Barpeta will bounce back and
will bounce back with gusto! I would like
to visit such a Barpeta, get lynched and
enjoy the lynching as well! Hope that
happens soon: I am an old man, you see!
Countervailing
Growth
Geoffery
The serial blasts in Asom on October 30
were another blow to the growth trajectory
of India. The current growth rate of 9
per cent has already been affected by
the ongoing financial tsunami. Financial
pundits have predicted that though it
may not be able to sustain the current
growth rate, the economy of the country
may not be affected very badly. But how
much is anyone’s guess? Experts
attribute the perceived strength to finer
checks and balances of the Indian economy.
But what about terror that is hampering
the progress of the nation by lurking
behind as a monstrous shadow?
India’s present growth rate was
put on blocks in the early nineties when
protectionist policies took the place
for policies of economic liberalization.
The nation has now achieved a faster economic
growth, which had hardly crossed the mark
of 3 per cent before the nineties. This
speed has given status and power to the
nation. The same can be gauged by the
manner in which developed countries regard
India vis-à-vis the nineties. It
is a proud moment the way other nations
are having a re-look at their foreign
policies towards India. The recent Indo–US
nuclear deal is a testimony of the paradigm
shift in the thinking of developed nations.
This gives an added impetus to the image,
power and status of our nation. Other
economies have also gained the confidence
to rely on our capabilities.
However there are certain forces who want
to countervail this growing power. Probably
an asymmetric war is played against the
country by those who are either not able
to keep pace or others through covert
sponsoring. This is done in the form of
terror acts to condition the psyche of
people at large. This has an effect on
our people as well as on those having
interest in our country. Going through
the chronology of terror acts, one concludes
that during the gestation period of growth
(i.e. the decade of nineties), these acts
were also few and far between. But as
the runner picked up speed in the new
millennium, countervailing forces have
also gained momentum.
The year 2008 has been the worst till
date. In 2001, it was the attack on parliament
(the power centre). In 2003, the target
was the financial capital of Mumbai. In
2005, miscreants aimed at hitting the
psyche of the people just before the most
celebrated festival of India — Diwali
—— with a blast in the crowded
Sarojini Nagar Market of Delhi. In 2006,
it was Varanasi and Mumbai once again.
In 2007, it was Panipat and Hyderabad.
The current year is the worst hit with
a number of serial blasts in places that
mark the country’s progress ——
Jaipur, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Surat, Delhi
(twice) and now the highly sensitive State
of Asom. The latest blasts are to be seen
more as a threat to much talked about
Look East Policy (LeP), which aims towards
projecting the best of the Northeastern
Region (NER).
Quantitatively, the figure of those killed
(approx 600) in the new millennium due
to terror is negligible, especially when
it is put in the backdrop of a population
of more than 100 crores. However, qualitatively
and measuring by the factors responsible
for power —-. condignment, compensation
and conditioning —— the effect
of the unleashed terror is enormous. It
is conditioning the minds of the people
against the efficacy of law and order
in the State. It is also driving a wedge
in the diversities of the country. There
are a lot of intrinsic contradictions
in our democratic set up. This type of
terror affects our own countrymen, it
affects those evincing interest in our
country, it affects the foreign investors,
it affects the tourism industry, et al.
The question now arises: Are these terror
attacks a new form of asymmetric combat
against a progressive economy by those
who are lagging behind? Is it an asymmetric
combat by developed economies that see
developing ones as threat? Is our internal
contradiction taking the toll?
The answer probably lies in a mixture
of all of the above. Abetment, encouragement
and sponsoring of insurgencies in J&K
and NER and other parts of our country
by the ISI, DGFI and other foreign agencies
is an established fact. Out of 29 States
in India, almost 19 States are affected
by violence (12 States in Northern, Central
and Southern India plus 7 States of Northeast
India). The aim is to weaken the nation
both on the material and psychological
plane. The internal contradictions of
a divisive polity in the country cannot
be ignored. The symbiosis of polity, bureaucracy
and under ground (UG) elements needs no
telling. The symbiosis of UG and foreign
elements in Border States is well documented.
The planting of bombs during the recent
blasts in Asom are perceived to have been
done by ULFA at the behest of agencies
across border. There is a need to change
the nation’s response from plain
rhetoric, fault finding and reactive to
decisively measured proactive response.
Our democracy needs to learn a lesson
from the recent Presidential elections
of the United States of America. Republican
candidate Mc Cain not only accepted his
defeat gracefully, but he also promised
to extend all possible help to Obama in
governance unlike our democracy where
a defeated party leaves no stone unturned
to pull down the ruling Government.
Unpredictable
Northeasterners
Party Away to Dispersion
Karunamay Sinha
Wise people say some people live to eat
and some eat to live. There can be another
type: people who eat to die. “If
you are to die,” these people say,
“Do not die unless you’ve
relished to your heart’s content
the delicacies the world has on offer”
If they are told death is knocking at
their doors, they will say, “If
he is coming, let’s devour things
to our heart’s content before he
arrives.” They prefer to eat their
way to death. Be that as it may. So many
idiosyncratic notions and attitudes are
associated with peoples in various parts
of the world. Have you, for instance,
heard of people who made merry until it
led them to their dissolution?
You will find them in Northeast India.
The celebrations of Chapchar Kut, after
it was invented by the Kawlni subtribe
at Suaipui, became so much popular among
all the Mizo groups that one year it caused
the inhabitants of a whole village to
disperse and seek shelter in other villages
for keeping their body and soul together.
Members of the Kawilam tribe of Chawngtui
village were once reveling in their celebrations
of Chapchar Kut after they had cleared
their jhum plots. The celebrations attained
so high a pitch that they forgot the world
around them. The casks of zu (rice beer)
they had contributed for the occasion
did not last them more than a few days.
But they kept on brewing new barrels of
zu to keep up the supply. It was guzzling,
singing and dancing day in and day out.
When finally they sobered up one day and
were cured of their hangover, they realized
that they had overshot the time limit
by quite a few months. The jhumming season
was over and people in other villages
had harvested their jhums. Now there were
no other ways to survive in those days
if you didn’t grow crops in time.
Fate had played a cruel joke on them.
The village broke up. People set out in
different directions to find food and
shelter and eventually merged with the
people of other villages.
A similar story occurred in the Ruallung
village. People there were so mortally
engrossed in the revelry that they lost
count of how many days they were held
in thrall. Then one day, while they were
in the grip of an ecstasy, dancing Chai
dance in the village square, a parrot
was seen flying overhead. The merrymakers
cried out in unison. This frightened the
bird and it dropped the thing that was
clasped in its beak. The boisterous lot
rushed to see what it was. It was an ear
of rice. How could there be rice at this
time of the year when the jhum plots weren’t
even ready! The revelers were taken aback.
Partying came to a sudden halt and the
wise ones strained their brains on this
unseemly occurrence. To their horror,
they later discovered that their jhum
plots were overgrown with shrubs and that
paddy in jhums elsewhere had come to ear!
The two stories may be confused versions
of shared traditions. But they reflect
one truth: Chapchar Kut, to the Mizos,
is the other name of ecstasy.
Techno
Bag
Worth a Look!
Al-meraj
If you need a compact digital camera with
a long zoom, the Canon IXUS 970 IS is
worth a look. It comes with Optical Image
Stabilization and a 5x optical zoom lens.
The ultra compact and lifestyle segment
from Canon, the IXUS series, has another
addition — the 970 IS. It is a 10
MP ultra-compact camera from Canon and
comes with a 37-185 mm lens that has a
5x optical zoom capability and Canon’s
optical image stabilization.
The IXUS 970 IS features smooth curves
and an elegant matte finish look which
makes it sleek and stylish. But, given
the shape of the camera, it’s not
very comfortable to hold it while shooting
for some. Being rounded on all sides does
score some points for the looks, but holding
the camera is difficult even if your hands
are slightly sweaty. The back of the camera
holds a 2.5-inch LCD that has a max resolution
of 230,000 pixels as well as an optical
viewfinder.
The Canon IXUS 970 IS uses a proprietary
rechargeable NB-5L Li-ion battery that
takes around 45 minutes to be fully charged
using the ACK-DC30 AC Adapter Kit. There
are 19 shooting and scene mode presets
ranging from the standard full Auto to
the more creative Manual mode that has
the Color Accent and Color Swap presets.
The sheer number of these presets will
let you shooting in a variety of conditions.
You’d still need to get used to
switching modes real fast or depend totally
of the full-Auto mode.
The inbuilt flash has a range of about
11 ft at the wide end of the zoom and
offers the usual range of modes like forced
flash, and automatic flash. These modes
can be easily switched on or off as per
requirements. The AF illuminator is used
as a focusing aid in low-light situations,
and is fairly impressive. In addition
to that, the IXUS 970 IS also makes use
of focusing aids like Face Detect AF and
AiAF (9-point). Measuring 95.4 x 57.2
x 27.4 mm (WxHxD), the IXUS 970 weighs
165 grams. The Canon IXUS 970 IS is available
for a street price of Rs. 17,900 with
a one-year warranty. If you want to go
on a hassle-free shooting spree, just
grab it but make sure you don’t
sweat a lot!
Unexpressed love
Abhilashi Bhuyan
A single star in the sky,
Is enough to make me think of you,
It reminds me of your touch in my life.
No
proper words do I have,
I just have to say:
I care for you.
No, sweet song do I have to sing,
I just want to sing:
I love you.
No poem do I have to recite,
I just want to say:
I miss you.
Your
sweet thoughts,
Passes me though the most difficult of
times.
I promise that I’ll love you,
The way I do,
In all the times.
And everytime.
Mind
over Matter
Gariasi Dutta answers all your queries
on mind, matter and life.
Q. My husband has a habit of spending
too much. He spends on his extended family,
friends and all and sundry, even at the
cost of us compromising on the needs of
his home and two children. Whenever I
tell him anything about this, he starts
fighting with me and says that he spends
because he wants people to love him. It
is getting very difficult to live in this
manner. (Mrs. Choudhury)
Gariasi Dutta replies: Your husband is
believes that he can buy love! He’s
mostly suffering from a case of inferiority
complex wherein he feels that people will
love him for the things he buy them and
not for his own self. This could have
been harboured from his childhood itself
due to early experiences and the environment
in which he grew up. If you confront him,
he will get more annoyed and treat you
as his enemy. Instead support him in his
endeavour and at the same time, gently
point out to him the there are certain
things you need to buy for the house or
the children. This way he shall not feel
threatened by your words and shall be
able to relax too. He may even share his
insecurities with you which would be helpful
to you in sorting out his feelings of
inadequacy.
Q. My 15-year old son has become quite
withdrawn and unsocial of late. He stays
quietly by himself and does not mix up
with the family members. At times I notice
that he is crying by himself. He hesitates
to talk to others. (Mr. Deka)
Gariasi Dutta replies: Looking at the
symptoms your son could be suffering from
depression. He is finding it difficult
to reach out to others because of his
depression. Counselling will help to find
out the root cause of his depression and
help sort out his feelings. A combination
of medication and counselling would be
the best way to help your son out. Please
take him to a psychiatrist and counselor
as soon as possible.
Q. My best friend has stopped talking
to me and has made a new friend in class.
They sit together in class and have their
tiffin together. This new friend is new
to our school. I am very sad. What should
I do? (Name withheld)
Gariasi Dutta replies: I am so sorry to
hear about your friend’s behaviour.
Did you both have a fight before she stopped
talking to you or has she simply stopped
talking to you? It could be that your
best friend is giving the new girl company
so as to make her feel more comfortable
in the new settings, but her manner is
definitely incorrect. Try talking to your
friend and tell her that her behaviour
is hurting you very much and that you
view her as your best friend. Also mention
that the three of you could be good friends
together. After all the more the merrier.
That should definitely work. All the best!
A
Psychosocial Perspective to Disaster Management
For the
benefit of our esteemed readers, we are
carrying this special feature which dwells
on the various kinds of mental problems
that might crop up in the aftermath of
the serial bomb blasts.
The writer — Gariasi Dutta
(MSW, TISS) — is a Psychiatric Social
Worker in Down Town Hospitals.
The physical effects of a disaster are
usually obvious. Tens or hundreds or thousands
of people lose their lives. The survivors
suffer pain and disability. Homes, workplaces,
livestock and equipment are damaged or
destroyed. The short-term emotional effects
of disaster -— fear, acute anxiety,
feelings of emotional numbness and grief
-— may also be obvious. For many
victims, these effects fade with time.
But for many others, there may be long-term
emotional effects, both obvious and subtle.
Some of the emotional effects are direct
responses to the trauma of disaster. Other
effects are long-term responses to the
interpersonal, societal, and economic
effects of the disaster. In any case,
in the absence of well-designed interventions,
up to 50 percent or more of the victims
of a disaster may develop lasting depression,
pervasive anxiety, post-traumatic stress
disorder, and other emotional disturbances.
Even more than the physical effects of
disasters, the emotional effects cause
long-lasting suffering, disability, and
loss of income.
The most basic issue in psychosocial intervention
following disasters is to transform those
affected from being victims to survivors.
What differentiates a victim from a survivor
is that the former feels himself [sic]
subject to a situation over which s/he
has no control over his environment or
himself, whereas a survivor has regained
a sense of control and is able to meet
the demands of whatever difficulty confronts
him. A victim is passive and dependent
upon others; a survivor is not —
s/he is able to take an active role in
efforts to help his/her community and
himself/herself recover from the disaster.
Imagine yourself and your family as being
the victim of a disaster: an earthquake,
a flood, an airplane crash in your community,
a terrorist attack. What happens to us
when we go through a disaster? What do
we feel and experience under such circumstances?
Almost instantly, in response to the sights
and sounds of the event itself, our hearts
pound, our mouths go dry, our muscles
get tense, our nerves go on alert, we
feel intense anxiety or fear or terror.
If there has been little or no warning,
we may not understand what is happening
to us. Shock, a sense of unreality, and
fear dominate. Long after the event —
the sights, sounds, smells and feelings
of the event persist as indelible images
in our memories.
As the immediate shock and terror dissipates,
long-term effects appear. The disaster
challenges our basic assumptions and beliefs.
Most of us, most of the time, believe
that our personal world is predictable,
benevolent, and meaningful. We assume
we can trust in ourselves and in other
people and that we can cope with adversity.
Disaster destroys these beliefs. We become
aware of our vulnerability. We feel helpless
and hopeless. We despair in our inability
to make decisions and to act in ways that
would make any difference to our families
and ourselves.
In the wake of the disaster, we grieve
for the death of loved ones and we marvel
at our own survival (and we may feel unworthy
or guilty for having survived). We also
grieve for our home, for treasured personal
memorabilia, for post documents, lost
familiar neighbourhoods. If the disaster
has disrupted our community’s traditional
subsistence activities or our community
itself, we may feel intense feelings of
loss tied to our cultural and social identity,
as well. The loss of our personal world,
of a sense of safety, of belief in ourselves,
in the trustworthiness of others or even
in the benevolence of God are not just
thoughts; they trigger deep feelings of
loss and grief.
In the days and weeks following the disaster,
we may experience a wide variety of emotional
disturbances. For some, chronic grief,
depression, anxiety, or guilt dominates.
For others, difficulties in controlling
anger, suspiciousness, irritability and
hostility prevail. Yet others avoid or
withdraw from other people. Far many,
sleep is disturbed by nightmares, the
waking hours by flashbacks in which they
feel as if the disaster is happening all
over again. Not a few begin to abuse drugs
or alcohol.
Delayed Effects of Disaster:
Some emotional effects of the disaster
may not appear till a considerable lapse
in time. For some victims, initial relief
at having been rescued and the initial
optimism about the prospects of recovery
may produce a “honeymoon stage.”
Over a period of months or even years,
this may give way to a realization that
personal and material losses are irreversible.
Loved ones who died will not return. Disruptions
in the family are permanent. Old jobs
will not reappear. A long-term reduction
in standard of living has occurred. Depression
and anxiety may now appear for the first
time in some victims, and the suicide
rate may actually rise.
Other victims of disaster appear initially
to be “doing well.” This may
be illusory, however. To protect themselves,
they may suppress or inhibit the processing
of the impact of the disaster upon them.
After a delay (considerable at times),
the stimuli associated with the disaster
may trigger memories, pulling previously
suppressed material back into consciousness.
As a result, psychological responses to
the disaster may “suddenly”
appear, months or even years afterward.
Importance of Psychosocial Care:
At the early stages following disaster,
most survivors are open and willing to
talk about their experiences. This may
change later into a defensive, non-cooperative
attitude if time passes without attempts
at providing help. Therefore, it is of
utmost importance that survivors are encouraged
to seek help and talk about their emotional
problems as early as possible.
Emotional problems following disasters
often tend to be neglected. This happens
because they are relatively invisible
when compared to the damage to life, physical
health and property. But it is important
to remember that emotional problems occur
very commonly. Hence, early identification
of this problem followed by intervention
will help the survivor to recover. The
distress is intense and leads to helplessness,
isolation and apathy. No one who witnesses
a disaster is untouched by it.
After a disaster, the emotional reactions
among members of a community may vary
and this also usually undergoes change
over time. Therefore, post-disaster psychological
interventions should be flexible and based
on an ongoing assessment of needs.
Working with Individuals:
* For people who are willing to talk immediately:
–– Listen attentively.
–– Do not interrupt.
–– Acknowledge that you understand
the pain and distress by leaning
forward.
–– Look into their eyes.
–– Console them by patting
on the shoulders or touching or holding
their hand as they cry. Caution: Be sensitive
to community norms about touching members
of the opposite sex.
–– Respect the silence during
your interaction: do not try to fill it
in by talking.
–– Keep reminding them, “I
am with you. Its good you are trying to
release your distress by crying. It will
make you feel better.”
–– Do not ask them to stop
crying.
* For those unwilling to talk:
Some people may be very angry or remain
mute and silent.
–– Do not get anxious or feel
rejected
that they are not communicating.
Remain calm, tell them you are here
to help them in the best possible way.
–– Maintain regular contact
and greet
them. Ask them about their welfare.
–– Maintain interaction by
reminding
them about the pain of separation,
distress of being alone, helplessness,
isolation, etc. This will help them to
feel their pain and get it out of their
system.
–– Acknowledge that you understand
their distress: the frustration,
emptiness and also subsequent anger
because of the vacuum created by the
loss.
–– Share their grief and console
them
that losing someone dear is terrible
and unfortunate.
–– Make them understand they
are not
to blame for the tragedy and need not
feel guilty.
–– Tell them you will return
the next
day or in a couple of days.
–– Tell them you are not upset
or angry
because he/ she did not talk.
Meanwhile ask him/ her to think
about whatever has been told.
“Memories of good days you spent
with each one must be alive in your
memory and coming to your mind
again and again. You must be tense
inside! Try and let the steam out, that
will make you feel better.”
References:
1) Ehrenreich John H.Coping with disasters:
A guidebook to psychosocial intervention
(revised edition).New York 2001
2) Cohen RE.Mental Health Services in
Disasters: Instructor’s Guide.Mexico.Pan
American Health Organization, Editorial
El Manual Moderno, S.A.de C.V., 2000
3) Austin, L, S. Responding to Disaster:
A Guide for Mental Health Professionals.
Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press,
1992.
